Why India’s gyms are struggling to stay in shape – The Economic Times

You have two options. The first is to get up, book a class in a gym, take your car out, navigate Bengaluru’s notorious traffic, search desperately for parking in Indiranagar (good luck with that), then rush to clock in at your gym. And then sweat it out. The second: You send a WhatsApp message to your personal trainer, he turns up at the gym in your building, you walk down to the clubhouse. And then sweat it out. The choice for Ajay (named changed), CEO of a startup in Bengaluru, was pretty easy. While he loved the vibe, the curated playlists, the energetic trainers, HRX group classes and strength & conditioning, as well as the app that let him book sessions easily, as soon as he moved to his new apartment in Whitefield with a decently equipped gym, yoga room and a squash court, he changed his routine, and ended his membership of Cult.fit, a fitness startup that has a chain of gyms. Ajay, 41, hired a freelance personal trainer, someone who used to work with Cult.fit. Meanwhile, in Mumbai, Rohit (name changed), a 29-year-old marketing professional, realised he hadn’t stepped inside his gym for over two months and decided
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